Of Broken Hallelujahs and Masquerades
by LadyShirahime93
Summary: /AU/ Having woken up from a year long coma Sakura turned to the blonde haired, blue eyed guy, in an odd orange jumpsuit, "Who are you exactly?"
1. Awake

_Sakura wakes from a year long coma. She turned to the blonde haired blue eyed guy in a tasteless orange jumpsuit, "Who are you exactly?" In which even the strongest cry sometimes. AU Dark!fic HidanXSakura_

**Of Blacken Hallelujahs and Honey Bees**

XxXx

It was with suddenness that she became aware she was in pain. She attempted to squirm her body, shift positions, and hopefully knock away whatever was holding her down to a, thankfully, soft surface but her limbs felt heavy and she became increasingly frustrated that she could not move.

She cried out, her voice tearing through a raw throat with such a pain filled beg to whoever was not allowing her even the simple pleasure of opening her eyes; to move aside and let her go, it was almost like her entire body was on fire. She struggled for a moment forcing her eyelids open and was met with the assault of white tiles laying above her head.

Gasping for air, she turned her head to hopefully glare at whoever had held her down but nobody was there. Blinking at the emptiness that lay before her she turned her head to her body she found her limbs unbound laying freely on a bed, a light blanket covering her abdomen and legs. She stared at her arms, fascinated that they looked so thin and frail almost breakable as if she would shatter any moment. She narrowed her eyes when, upon wanting to bring her arm to her face to inspect her wrist that she was positive had been full and healthy just the night before her arms stayed unmoving in position next to her body.

For a moment she panicked that she was paralyzed and that's why she couldn't move; but her moment was short lived as curtains to her right were pulled roughly aside. She turned to look at the person, eyes landing on a dark haired girl with an easily forgettable face in a nurse outfit.

She frowned, realization flooded her as she concluded she was in the hospital and that maybe she had been so sick that she had been delirious with fever and hadn't remembered arriving at the building. Maybe the sickness had made her rapidly lose weight too. It wasn't common, but neither was it unheard of. The nurse froze as she took in her alert but curious form and opened eyes. Her hands flew to her mouth, but instead of the scream the girl had steadied herself for, the nurse cried out "oh" and rushed forward.

"Can you hear me," The nurse asked, shinning a light in her's eyes. She closed her eyes against the assault, her eyes burning as her vision blurred. When the light clicked off, she opened her eyes and looked at the nurse who was starring at her with something akin to worry and... the girl couldn't quiet place the second emotion that was flashing in the elder girls eyes. Sadness? Relief, maybe?

"Can you hear me," she asked again this time more firmly.

She tried to open her mouth and tell the nurse yes, but found she couldn't, her jaw firmly locked in place. The panic from before came back into full swing, causing her heart to start racing, eyes flashing with fear. The nurse took her hands and curled them around two of her fingers.

"Squeeze my fingers if you can hear me," The nurse said. The girl began to struggle as none of her limbs wanted to move, her eyes alternating between her hands which lay immobile to the girl who was staring at her with worry growing on her face. The girl's eyes flashed with terror as the idea of never using her limbs again rushed into her head with such a force she was winded. Sweat broke out across her brow as she struggled, willed her hands to move, to let her know that she could still move. The struggle began to tire her out, and she found the sides of her vision beginning to cloud with darkness.

Panic coursed through her body her breath coming out in panic gasps. The nurse repeated her instruction muscles tensed in case the girl had an attack. The girl looked at the nurse, willing even just her mouth to open to tell the nurse that she was, but her body just wasn't listening to her. Tears pricked the back of her eyes as she willed herself with just a tiny twitch-

She let out a sigh of satisfaction and fell backwards into the darkness as her hands squeezed tightly around the woman's fingers.

XxXx

There was ringing off into the distance and it took him a few minutes to realize it was his phone. He sighed, irritated and opened his eyes, reaching over the body of his girlfriend who turned to glare at him and the phone for waking her up. Rolling his eyes at the antics he flipped open his phone.

"This is Naruto."

Hinata shifted and buried her nose into her pillow. Trying to force herself back to sleep and the wonderful dream she had been having, she was jarred from her rest as Naruto bolted up right.

"What," he squeaked, "When?"

Hinata sat up instantly worried and alert. Naruto looked at her, eyes shining with excitement as he grinned widely, "Yes! Yes! We'll be right there!"

"What happened," Hinata asked as Naruto dropped the phone in her lap and scrambled out of bed to shove his legs in a pair of jeans he had discarded on the floor.

He paused, turned and tackled Hinata back onto the bed, kissing her gleefully.

"What happened," She squealed. Had Ichiraku's started a sale...?

"That was the hospital. Sakura woke up," he breathed against her. Hinata took a second to register what he had said before she cried out, "Oh my God!"

Naruto scrambled to the side to avoid Hinata as she shot out of bed, grabbing her clothes and pulling them on hastily, ignoring how bad she looked and the Hyuuga pride in favor of the news. Hiashi would understand and if he didn't she would make him understand.

"Call Sasuke. I'll call Ino," she said, flipping open her phone in excitement as she slid into a a pair of flip flops.

She pressed the number for Ino's phone and pressed the device to her ear. It rang three times before Shikamaru's sleepy voice answered the receiver.

"Hinata?"

"Shikamaru," she squeaked in happiness as she turned to Naruto as he delivered the news to the younger Uchiha, "Wake up Ino!"

"She's gonna be mad. What's going on," he asked, even as he called for Ino to wake up. Hinata could hear her grumble but knew she was awake.

"You're on speaker. What's up Hinata," Ino grumbled.

"The hospital called! They said Sakura woke up," It was quiet on the other end of the phone and she imagined the two were letting the news sink in much like she had done. Hinata climbed into the car as Naruto took the drivers seat.

"_Oh my God!_" Ino's voice screamed into the receiver, "When?"

"Just now!"

"We'll be there in a few moments," Shikamaru said into the phone clicked and a dial tone sounded in her ear. Hinata looked down at her phone, scrolling until she reached another name. She called it and waited for the phone to pick up as she turned to look at the guard at the school gate.

"Genma," Naruto whined.

"Save it. I already heard. Just go. Tell her I said hi and I'll see her when I get off," He smiled. Naruto cried out his thanks and shot forward once the gates were open enough.

"Imouto-san," Neji's voice sounded in her ear.

"Neji! Guess what?"

XxXx

Somebody was brushing her hair to the side when she opened her eyes again. Turning her head, this time a little bit easier than the last time she had woken up, she saw a man standing beside her. He smiled down at her, not that she could tell since he was wearing a mask, but the crinkling of his eyes told her he was.

"Welcome back Sakura," he said. She blinked, turning her head to look at the other occupants in her room. Two more people stood beside him. A blonde with blue eyes who wore the biggest grin, and a raven haired boy who was smiling at her softly. At the foot of her bed was a busy blonde. To her right was another blonde with blue eyes. Beside her was a girl with long dark blue, almost black hair and pale lavender eyes. Beside her was a a man, his dark hair pulled back up into a spiky pony-tail.

She struggled to sit up a jolt of relief surging through her as she realized that she could move and she wasn't paralyzed. The masked man's hands found their way onto her back, easing her up more easily and the green eyed girl was grateful to the man. Once she was sitting up and leaning against the bed which had been pulled up she opened her mouth, testing the muscles of her jaw.

"W-what happened," she asked, wincing as her voice cracked, this question more important than the one that was nagging at the very surface of her brain.

"You've been in a coma, Sakura," The blonde at the foot of her bed said.

"For how long," she asked, pulling her hand to her throat and massaging the muscles. She missed the exchange of glances. When none of them answered her, she looked up.

"For how long," she repeated, this time uneasy flooding her body.

"For nearly a year," The blonde closest to her said softly. Sakura's eyes widened as she struggled to jump up on reaction, "Wh-what?"

The masked man reached out and gently pushed her back down against the bed, "Careful. You'll hurt yourself even more."

"Oh my God. Oh my God," Sakura chanted softly, closing her eyes, "What happened?"

Her throat felt a little bit better than before now that she had gotten to use it. She realized that earlier when she couldn't move it hadn't been because she had been paralyzed, but because her muscles hadn't been used in so long. They had atrophied. The near long coma certainly explained how frail looking she looked; and not some sort of freak sickness she hadn't remembered getting.

She opened her eyes against the silence her question had acquired to see all of them looking at each other.

"What," she asked, more worried than anything.

"It's not really our place to say," The dark ravenette said, her pale eyes not quiet meeting Sakura's.

"Why not," Sakura asked confused. Why couldn't they tell her what had happened? She had just woken out of a coma, a year long one, from what she had learned. She at least had the right to know how she had been put in such a state. And apparently, from the looks they had passed each other; they knew.

"It... just isn't our place," The masked man said, patting her head, "But you'll be told soon. I'm sure of it."

She looked up at him, slightly frustrated that she wasn't getting an answer that she had the right to know. But seeing the look he was giving her she felt herself relax; unsure of why he put her at ease so much. The mask man was pushed aside as the busty blonde moved forward, removing a stethoscope from around her neck.

"Breath deeply," she asked putting it on her chest. Sakura did as she was told, casting curious and questioning glances at the occupants in her room who skillfully watched her face without looking her in the eyes. She opened her mouth to ask the question that was dancing around her mind almost painfully, but the blonde began to speak to her instead and Sakura felt it would be better to listen to the doctor. Questions could be answered later.

"How do you feel," she asked, lifting the pink haired girl into a sitting position so she could listen to her lungs through her back.

"I feel like anybody else who just woke up out of a long coma. My throat hurts, my muscles are weak, my head is throbbing, my eyes hurt," she listed off her symptoms as the blonde laid her back against the bed to check her other vitals.

Wrapping a blood pressure gauge around her arm she nodded her head, "That's too be expected. I can get you some medicine for the pain, but you'll have to go through physical therapy for the rest. Hopefully you'll be up and walking around within a few months. I'll have to order some tests run. Nothing too taxing. EKG, cat scan; stuff like that."

Sakura nodded her head in understanding, "Sitting in a bed for a few months doesn't look so attractive, though."

The blonde chuckled, writing on a clip board, "No, I'm sure it doesn't."

"I'll be up and walking like normal in a months," Sakura said quietly, more to herself than everybody else. The occupants in the room looked at her but the blonde chuckled, "Sounds like you. Just don't hurt yourself any more."

She closed the clipboard and looked at the pink haired girl, smiling in such a motherly way that caught the rosette off guard. Sakura looked up at her and then at the rest of the occupants in the room, fidgeting slightly.

"Is something wrong," The blonde asked, concerned.

"Well, I know that none of you want to tell me how I got here," she said.

"But?"

Sakura hesitated, "But, who exactly are all you guys?"

XxXx

Kisame Hoshigaki became aware that everybody was looking at him. Blinking and coming out of his day dream he turned his head to catch the amused looks of his best friend, Itachi at being caught day dreaming during one of Pein's meetings. Then he realized that they weren't looking at him because he had been caught day dreaming, but because his phone, which he had been positive he had turned off, was ringing in his pocket.

Curious as to why his phone was ringing despite having been turned off, he shifted his body so he could reach his meaty hands into his pocket and pull out his phone, ignoring the raised eyebrows around him. Instead of turning it off and returning his focus back on Leader who was glaring holes into the side of his head; he paused when he saw his cousin's name flashing across the screen.

Pressing the neon green send button, he brought the phone to his ear, "Suigetsu," he questioned, positive and a little worried since his cousin had never called him before unless it was something important and life threatening. Seeing the shift in the nine other member's bodies around him, he realized the same thing was running through his mind.

"Oh my God! I got through to one of them," Suigetsu's ecstatic voice filled the speaker loud enough for those on the other side of the room to hear him.

Sensing that white haired boy was trying to get a hold of the Akatsuki as a whole, and not just Kisame, the blue haired man turned the speaker on in time to hear this cousin say, "Shika, dude, you have got to teach me how to hack into people's phones like that."

The lazy reply of "troublesome" was barely heard, before Suigetsu was speaking into the phone again, "Kisame, are you with the whole Akatsuki?"

"Yeah," Kisame said, his word coming out more like a question than an answer.

"Put me on speaker," Suigetsu demanded.

"Already done."

"Oh my God! Why the hell do all of you fuckers have you're phone off? Everybody has been trying to reach you guys for the past few hours," Suigetsu's tone turned angry. Kisame looked up as Deidara reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone, turning it on. The buzzing that signaled his phone relaying just how many missed calls he had seemed endless as it vibrated for a few moments before finally dying.

The blonde's eyes widened, "What the hell? Why do I have thirty-two missed calls, uhn?"

"Well maybe if one of you left your fucking phone on, you wouldn't have so many fucking missed calls," Suigetsu grumbled.

"Will you just tell them already," An irate voice of a woman sounded into the speaker, sounding distant but close enough to be picked up on the mic.

"Will you just shut the fuck up," Suigetsu snapped.

There was a pause, "Give me the phone."

"No, fuck off Karin, I've got this," Suigetsu replied. There was a thwack on the speaker as if the phone had hit the floor, and distantly Kisame could hear his cousin and Karin arguing in the background.

Kisame waited a few moments before he began to entertain the idea of hanging up and waiting how long it would take before the two bickering teens realized he was no longer on the phone. But the curiosity of why his cousin had called to begin with, kept him from ending the call. Vaguely, he wondered if it was anything important; and that if it was stupid, he would probably wind up beating the hell out of Suigetsu the next to he saw him. Judging by the withering glare Pein was sending Kisame's phone, his Leader was thinking along the same line.

The sound of the phone being picked up and moved became evident as the sound of fighting grew distant.

"Are you guys still there," A voice drawled out and Kisame recognized the voice of Neji Hyuuga.

With his curiosity growing as to why Naji was hanging out with Karin and Suigetsu of all people; he muttered his affirmation that he was still on the phone. After all, none of them had hung out since-

He stilled his thoughts, forcing himself on the breathing of those around him. Looking around, he realized the others were thinking the same thing, and that-

"You guys need to get to the hospital immediately," Neji voiced. Kisame shot an alarmed look at Leader who was now sitting up straighter, worry rolling of his neck.

"Why? What happened," Kisame asked turning his attention back to the cellular device.

"Sa-," Neji's voice trailed off for a few seconds, before his voice filled the sound of the air around the Akatsuki again, "Sasuke? What happened? Why is Hinata crying?" Neji hissed angrily.

"Is that the Akatsuki," Sasuke asked, and without waiting for a reply, the raven haired boy pulled the phone from Neji and brought it too his lips.

"Aniki," Sasuke's voice broke and Itachi was on his feet in a second, the promise of death in his eyes for whoever had made his brother sound so lost and hopeless.

"Sasuke, what happened," Itachi ground out.

"A couple of hours ago the hospital called Naruto. Sakura woke up," A dam broke on the other end of the phone, as Sasuke let out a choked sob, but they could tell he was forcing himself to not cry, because Uchiha's do not cry in public. The air around the Akatsuki seemed to freeze as the information seemed to click.

Seven sets of members were on their feet in an instant, chairs knocked over as they all leaned towards the phone, hopeful, and yet afraid that they hadn't quiet heard correctly.

"What," Sasori said.

"She's awake and alert. Answering questions and talking and everything. Naruto, Tsunade, Kakashi, Shikamaru, and Ino are in there right now talking to her," Sasuke said. Kisame took one look at the phone, before he was stumbling over himself in a haste to shove his shoes on his feet.

Sakura was awake. Now everything could go back to normal. There would be no more gloom that seemed to follow everybody around, no more random flashes of sadness when the other members were forced to remember their pink haired friend when they passed by her silent dorm room, or the chair that forever remained empty at the cafeteria table, waiting for the green eyed girl to return and eat lunch just like she used to. Everything would return to normal, the world around them returning to how it use to be, how-

Kisame's thoughts were once again cut off, as Sasuke's pain laced voice filled the speaker on his phone, "Aniki. She doesn't remember."

"What do you mean," Itachi asked, picking up the phone, "What doesn't Sakura remember?"

"Anything."

XxXx

Hope you enjoyed.

Sorry for the mistakes and please review.


	2. Decisions

_I do not own Naruto._

_If I did, Akamaru would be a ferret named Mr. Pringles._

XxXx

He had been uncharacteristically quiet since Suigetsu started complaining into Kisame's cell phone about the rest of the Akatsuki not leaving their cells on. When Deidara had exclaimed that he had thirty-two missed calls, his heart stopped beating for a moment, his lungs constricting painfully as he waited for Neji to explain why they had called so many times.

Dare he hope to believe...?

"A couple of hours ago the hospital called Naruto. Sakura woke up."

His breath caught in his throat. Awake? She was awake? He jumped to his feet, his hands slamming down on the table in front of him with enough force to make it groan under the sudden weight. He was aware the others had followed suit but for a moment, but for a single glorious moment, it was just him in the room. Him and the phone.

"She's awake and alert. Answering questions and talking and everything. Naruto, Tsunade, Kakashi, Shikamaru, and Ino are in there right now talking to her."

His thoughts seemed to still for a sudden moment, the room seemed to shift, his eyes flickering to the other members faces as if trying to get them to confirm that that, yes, he had heard correctly.

"She doesn't remember - Anything."

The noise in the room seemed to die as if even the very atoms in the air froze for a single second to take in the information. Then everything came rushing back to him, the hitched breaths as one by one they all realized what the younger Uchiha had just said. The ache in his heart he had gotten so used to seemed to explode all at once, rushing across every nerve, every microscopic atom of his body. Blood rushed through his veins from his beating heart pounding in his chest and for a second he was afraid it would explode out of his chest, showering the table in ruby red liquid.

_What didn't she remember?_

He could barely hear Sasuke's voice now, "She thought she was fourteen. She doesn't know about anything that's happened the last few years. She didn't enough know us. She thought she was still in junior high living with her parents."

_What? Like amnesia? Bullshit. That only happened in movies or books. This was real life and stuff like that just **didn't happen.**_

He was aware that several eyes were watching him waiting for him to react, but he had yet to move; his hands firmly on the table, body hunched over, eyes hidden by the shadows in the room. If one of them looked close enough they would see the muscles in his jaw clench and unclench. His fingers curled down, nails digging into the soft wood.

"Are you okay," he heard a voice say next to him. He turned his eyes to see Konan starring at him with something akin to worry, fear, sadness, and pity. He thought about snapping at her, telling her to mind her own damn business; but his throat constricted painfully and he became aware of how much he was hurting.

"She doesn't remember," He said, his voice coming out quiet and laced with pain. A dam broke in Konan's eyes and she reached out, pulling the other man into a hug. He didn't move. He couldn't. The very blood in his veins had frozen with pain. Just when he had thought everything would go back to normal...

"Is there a chance she could recover her memory," Itachi asked his brother. There was a pause and for a moment he feared the worst.

"Tsunade doesn't know yet. We knew there was a chance that there would be brain damage due to what happened," Sasuke said. This was true, they had known that, Tsunade had prepped them; but it still didn't hurt _any less._

She didn't remember. She didn't remember anything. She didn't remember how she got here or _what happened._

"We knew she'd have amnesia for a few weeks, maybe even a few months, but for so long...," Kisame mumbled. She could only remember when she had been fourteen. Sakura had come into their lives when she was fifteenth, a few weeks after her birthday. She had first step foot into the boarding school freshman year, eyes flickering over the faces memorizing them in a single instance; weary and afraid.

"Does she know," He asked, and the tone in his voice booked no argument on what he was talking about. _Did she know how she got injured?_

"No," Sasuke spoke again. Just one word; one word that would cause him to draw up, straighten his shoulders, head cocked to the side, his features perfectly schooled into an almost permanent scowl. Confidence seemed to roll off him and in that single instance that Sasuke spoke, the look of pain in his eyes was replaced by a cold darkness.

"It's best if she _never_ knows. To stop what happened before, from _repeating_," He said.

XxXx

There was silence. Complete and utter silence. She resisted the urge to squirm uncomfortably as the machines above her head hummed and clicked, taking pictures of her brain. An MRI the nurse had called it; she had seen it before on TV and although she had been told she had sat in the back room before studying the machine for her schooling; she couldn't remember ever having seen one in person. Her head was pounding despite the fact that she had been given pain medications. It was no wonder.

She was missing three years of her memory. Well technically, it was only two, she thought bitterly, since the third year she was in a coma. A year long coma to boot. A coma nobody was telling how she got in to begin with.

It felt strange to her. To her she was four-teen, in junior high, and just now beginning to develop a body, living with her parents in a middle class home because her family wasn't rich, but neither were they poor. To others she was seven-teen, a junior, with a nice body ("You'll get it back after you put on some more weight"), and going to the most prestigious (and expensive) boarding school in Japan.

Sakura Haruno had only been awake for less than a day and she felt her life spiraling out of control before she even got a chance to know what her life was anyway.

The machine above her stopped and the nurse on the other side of the glass talked into the mic that would allow Sakura to hear her, "Okay, we're done for now. I'll take you back to you're room."

Sakura gave the nurse a small smile as she was transferred from the cold machine's table back to her bed. They left the room and maneuvered the hallways. She lifted her head to look up at the nurse, "Did you see anything abnormal- ah... Shizune?"

The nurse looked down at the green eyed girl and shook her head, "Everything appeared to be in working order. I'll let Tsunade explain some more."

Sakura turned her head as she was pushed back into her room. The silver haired guy in the mask, the blonde haired guy with blue eyes, the dark haired guy with a spiky pony tail, the blonde haired girl with blue eyes, and Tsunade looked up as she came back.

Tsunade smiled, clicking on images that flashed across the computer mounted on the wall. Sakura starred at it until she realized that Tsunade was looking at the images of her brain the MRI had taken.

"That's gross," Sakura wrinkled her nose.

"Really? You were very much into medical science before your accident," Tsunade smiled, "In fact, you were training under me."

Sakura shrugged, "Sure it's okay when it's somebody else; but I don't want to see my brain. Ever."

There were a couple of chuckles around the room as Tsunade moves the monitor to face away from the rosette.

"So Shizune-san says everything looks alright," Sakura questioned.

The blonde nodded, "She's right. Brain activity looks normal. Everything _looks_ in perfect order."

"So, why can't I remember," Sakura asked, looking down at her hands. There was a reassuring hand on her shoulder and she shot a small smile to the silver haired man. She shifted her gaze back to the busty blonde as she sat back, folding her perfectly manicured hands together.

"When you came to the hospital a year ago, you were suffering from massive internal bleeding- no don't ask what happened, it's not my place to say," Tsunade said, putting her hand up to stop the question that was forming on Sakura's lips, "You had to have brain surgery to correct some bleeding to your brain. It's possible that there you're accident caused damage to the part of your brain that controls memories."

"It... it... whatever happened to me, it was really bad wasn't it," Sakura asked quietly.

"There were a few times where we thought we lost you."

Sakura winced, unable to comprehend death, to comprehend an end, even now while she was sitting in the hospital having just awaken from a coma.

"Do you, ah, do you think I'll be able to get them back? My memories I mean," The emerald eyed girl asked. Tsunade dipped her head, "It's possible. You could get them back next week, you could get them back next year; but you could also never get them back. The brain is mysterious and scientist and doctors still don't know how it works exactly even with technological advancements."

Sakura felt her chin tremble for a moment before she drew herself up, "I understand. Its just hard, not remembering... you know?"

"Cheer up Sakura-chan. We'll just make new memories with you," The blonde haired boy- he had introduced himself as 'Naruto', said with a grin on his face. She gave him a smile and once again, Kakashi's hand patted her shoulder reassuringly.

"Now," Tsunade said, getting up, "I think Sakura should get some rest. You've had an overwhelming first day back and it would be horrible if you passed out from exhaustion."

She pulled a needle out from one of the cupboards on the wall and took off the protective sealing. She flicked it and pushed some of the medication out before inserting it into Sakura's IV drip.

"You guys, ah, will you guys be here when I wake up," Sakura asked, suddenly afraid that she would wake up all alone.

"We're not going to leave you," Kakashi said as the rosette began to feel more tired than she had ever felt before. She leaned back up on the bed and smiled wearily again.

"Good," she slurred, and welcomed the restful darkness.

XxXx

His steps were loud against the linoleum as he walked down the hallway. People took one look at the dark aura he seemed to radiate and scrambled to the side afraid of earning his anger; but if they looked closely enough they could see the sadness lingering in his eyes.

His feet guided him to the door he had seen a thousand times. He stood in front of it, contemplating on whether he should go inside or not when the door opened. The blonde who stepped out froze at the sight of him, brown eyes widening as she took a step backwards to stop from running into him.

She tilted her head to the side, "You're here."

His eyes flickered to her and then back to the heavy white door behind her.

"She's asleep," Tsunade said, stepping to the side. He tilted his head in acknowledgement and opened the door brushing past her.

For a second he thought the past few hours had been a dream. She looked the same as always. Eyes drawn shut, skin too pale drawn taunt over bones that showed through her clothing. Her hair sprawled out behind her messily, the color faded from underexposure to the sun, grown long and tangled. Her chest gently rising up and down with each breath.

But then he saw the others who were watching her just as greedily as he was. Shikamaru had torn his eyes away from Sakura's sleeping form and looked up at him.

"Hey guys, lets give him a moment," Shikamaru said. Naruto looked ready to protest but saw who was standing in the door, fell silent, and got up to follow the others until one by one, they all left leaving him alone in the room with her.

_His eyes rested back on her face and suddenly he saw blood. Her hair was matted with it; it was running out of her mouth, her nose, and her ears. Her mouth was open in a silent scream, her eyes open and lifeless staring straight at him endlessly. His heart hammered in his chest as he watched helplessly as she stopped breathing._

He closed his eyes, willing the flashback to die before it began. His breath came out ragged, heavy, and hot. How many times had he saw that exact same image every time he had stepped into this hospital room? How many more times would he, every time he saw her face?

He stepped closer to her bed until he was right up against it. His eyes trailed the angle of her jaw bone, the curves of her face, the splashes of her hair. He reached out and ran his fingers through her pink locks, his heart stopping when she leaned into his touch.

He snatched his hand back quickly as if he had just been burned and let it fall to his side. She sighed in her sleep, almost like she was irritated he had stopped touching her. He let himself smile for a moment; but then the smile fell from his face.

She would never know him. If she remembered, the whole cycle would just start again. She would get hurt again, or worse, she would die.

No, he frowned, he would never let her. She would have to stay in the dark. He felt bad for her. She would never know how she came to be in the hospital, in a coma. He would make sure of that.

His fingers reached out and traced the flesh of her lips, before bringing his fingers to his lips. Permitting himself to only allow this much, he turned on his heel and opened the door. He hesitated, turning his head to look at her one last time, before shutting the door and walking out of her life ignoring the throb of pain echoing in the area where his heart use to be.

XxXx

_Tbc._

_So, anybody watch **The Legend of Korra?** I started to the other day and I've got to say, I really like it._

_Sorry for the mistakes in this chapter. Also, sorry this chapter seems a little bit slower; I'll speed it up for the rest of the chapters, but this one is suppose to set the setting and stuff for the actual storyline. You'll figure it out in future chapters._

_I hope you liked. Please review!_


	3. Pictures

_I do not own Naruto._

_If I did, Garra would be named "Noodle"_

XxXx

The click of the lock sliding open, the door creaking against the wooden frame, and the loud crack announced his arrival back to the base. Curious eyes slid over to him as his massive frame stood in the doorway, still and alert, eyes dancing around the room.

Satisfied that everything was it should be, he stepped forward away from the door. Feeling the eyes on him, he turned a glare on to the closest person to him. Itachi merely raised an eyebrow in response.

"You went to the hospital," he said matter-of-factually.

"What's it to you," he grown out in response, jaw locked.

The Uchiha's unemotional mask slid across his features and he turned back to the tea in his hand, raising it to his lips and sipped the steaming liquid.

The longer he starred at the long haired man, the more irritated he felt until he was ready to punch somebody, most preferably the Uchiha. Itachi glanced back at him, red eyes glowing in the shadows the room cast. There was a long second when the two locked eyes together, the air around him seemed to freeze, and everybody else tensed waiting for the explosion that was bound to happen.

However the other man sighed, the tension dropping from well-defined shoulders as he sagged into the chair in front of him, looking every bit the defeated man he felt, "Yeah, I went to the fucking hospital."

"Interesting. Did you talk to Sakura," Itachi asked.

"She was asleep."

Itachi hummed low in the back of his throat and dipped his head in acknowledgement. His eyes flickered back to the other man for a moment, before dropping to his raspberry flavored tea. He lifted it to his mouth and drained the sugary sweet liquid.

"What now?"

"Same thing as before. Our mission is still the same no matter if Sakura is in a coma, awake, has her memory, doesn't have it, or is on Jupiter. Zetsu, secure the perimeter. Tobi keep an eye on the charge. Hidan, Kakuzu get rid of everything that could alert Sakura of her past. Konan and Pein, I trust you'll be able to deal with Sakura's schooling issues? Kisame and I will make sure the media isn't involved. Sasori, Deidara, I trust you will be able to check on the 'Three's' statuses?"

Despite the fact that Itachi was in no way the leader of Akatsuki, the others could find no room for argument in his tone. Even Pein nodded his head, though his pride demanded he show exactly where Itachi could shove those orders of his. But this was a mission, and his pride could wait.

The room was empty a moment later.

XxXx

"So," Sakura's face twisted up into confusion, "I'm friends with this guy named Garra, because he tried to kill me?"

Naruto nodded his head slightly before dipping it to the side, "Somewhat. Garra is a little... unique. He was a loner for the longest time; but then he came to Konoha, and well; I guess the pressure of too many people made him snap."

"Uh huh," Sakura said, still not getting how she was friends with him _now_, if he had tried to kill her before.

"So, well, I beat him up and we've been best friends ever since," Naruto grinned. She blinked up at him in response before turning her eyes to the other occupants in the room.

"I get the feeling that this is normal for you- us," Sakura corrected.

"You have no idea," Shikamaru groaned from his place on the bed next to her. He had taken to lay there since no patient was using it. Ino was curled up on her side next to him, fast asleep. Kakashi was sitting on the windowsill, arms crossed, face dipped down, though she couldn't his eyes from where she laid, Sakura could tell he was also asleep. Sasuke sat in a plush chair in the corner, also asleep, a blanket wrapped around his body. The only other two who were awake were Hinata and Naruto who sat next to her bed, talking to her in quiet voices, telling her stories about them.

It had been several days since she had woken out of her coma. Although she had visitors from other people; the people that had been there when she had originally woken up, almost never left except to leave and take a showers, change clothing, and eat. They had taken the times in between sleeping and tests done on Sakura to tell her of the life she had during the years she couldn't remember hoping to maybe initiate a reaction in her and cause her to remember something.

So far, her mind remained just as blank as always.

'It's not as if you're going to hear something and it will trigger all your memories to return. That's Hollywood stuff; and it just doesn't work that way,' Tsunade had told her.

It wasn't like Sakura didn't know that. But it would still be nice to have some sort of face to go with the name of people Naruto and the others were talking to her about. So far, she had yet to meet this "Garra" and even though she imagined tall, buff guy, with deranged eyes, a heart tattoo with "Mom" written in the middle on biceps the size of her head; it was all imagination and she had no solid basis.

Still, she didn't think she would really want to remember someone who had tried to kill her; although the memory of how they had become friends would be nice to ensure she didn't panic upon seeing him.

Turning her eyes back to Naruto, she motioned to Hinata, "So, you and her are going out?"

Sakura felt her lips tug upwards as both people in question turned pink, "Ah yeah, Sakura-chan you were actually the one who got us together."

An eyebrow rose on her head, "Oh? Do tell."

"Well, when I met you it was love at first sight. I was desperate to get your attention; but you had eyes for this bastard," Naruto jerked his head to the sleeping Sasuke. Sakura rose an eyebrow again.

"Meanwhile, Hinata-chan was busy crushing after me," Said girl blushed, "And you got to the point where you were annoyed with me always asking you out and felt bad for Hinata's unrequited love, that you decided to get us together."

"How did I do that," The green eyes girl asked.

"Well, you told me you wanted to meet me in the locker room after hours because you were too embarrassed and you didn't want other people to hear. So when I got there, Hinata was already waiting, and you had got Ino to steal the keys from the Gai-sensei's office; so you locked us in there for the night.

"We freaked out at first; and then spent half the night plotting how to get you back. When it came time for morning, I realized I liked Hinata, so I started to pay attention to her little bit by little bit. Eventually I wound up realizing I loved her and asked her out. We've been together ever since."

Sakura found herself grinning, "So everything turned out alright in the end."

"Yeah, we still got you two back for the locker room incident," Naruto play scowled, trying to look stern and failing due to the grin that was threatening to split across his face.

"What did you guys do," Sakura asked curiously.

"Let's just say you freak out every time you see frogs and neon orange sock," Naruto grinned.

"Orange... socks," Sakura questioned. He looked ready to tell her, but she held up her hand and shook her head, "Never mind, I don't think I want to know."

Hinata giggled.

Naruto stood, "I think I'm going to go get some food. Do you want anything Hinata-chan?"

The girl in question shook her head and the two watched as he left the room before turning to each other.

"So, I've met you and Ino; but do I have any other girl friends,"Sakura asked. The pale eye girl nodded.

"There's TenTen, Temari, and Karin," she said.

"What are they like?"

"Well, TenTen and Temari are best friends because they're tomboyish. TenTen has a fascination with weapons and wants to be a weapons designer like her dad when she grows up. Temari has a thing for fans and Kabuki Theater," Hinata said, "Karin is mostly a loner. She has this deep fascination with Sasuke. For a while, before you two had met, everybody thought you and her were going to be enemies. When you two did meet, you just stared at each other for a while, then you said "Boys." and held out your hand. Karin replied with "Yep" and shook it, and you two have been good friends ever since."

Sakura giggled in reply.

"No offense Hinata, but you look like the quiet type," Sakura trailed off, unsure how to phrase the rest of what she was saying. The Hyuuga seemed to get it and smiled understandingly.

"I was, for the longest time. I still am during certain situations. I don't exactly have the best Dad," A pain expression flashed across her face and Sakura opened her mouth to tell the girl she didn't have to explain anything to her, but Hinata held up a hand to stop her, "Don't get my wrong. Father isn't abusive and he certainly does take care of me properly. But he has too many... expectations, if you will. It split my family and left a lot of people in ruins. My father couldn't handle the fact that I was soft and sent me away to Konoha with only my bitter cousin as a guard. During that time, my cousin has used me as an outlet for his frustrations and by the time I had met you I was a quiet and broken girl. Then I met Naruto-kun and he made me want to better myself. Being in a relationship with him has bettered me in many ways and only raised my self-esteem and confidence."

Sakura starred at the girl for a moment, "I... wow. I had no idea. Well, I mean, I know I have no idea; what I mean is-"

"I understand," Hinata said softly. She smiled gratefully at the other girl.

"It's hard. Not remembering, "Sakura said, looking down at her boney hands.

"I'm sorry," The lavender eyed girl said.

"I don't suppose you want to tell me how I got to be in a coma," Sakura asked curiously. The other girl began to fidget.

"I want to tell you, I really do. It's a long story and at best, I only know bits and pieces. There's only a hand-full of people who know exactly what happened; and none of them are in this room," She looked apologetically at Sakura as if trying to explain why she couldn't explain.

This only served to confuse the rosette more. Several theories began to fly through her head, each one more outlandish than the other. She had a feeling, since she had woken up, that whatever had caused her to slip into a coma was more complicated than a car accident or something of the sort. This only served to confirm her theories. That didn't mean she wasn't still confused; quiet the opposite. Now instead, she was more confused than before.

"Well, who exactly are the people that know the whole story," Sakura asked.

Hinata frowned, "They call themselves The Akatsuki. They're a gang in Konoha, and well you were apart of it before you're accident."

Sakura's eyebrows shot up into her hairline. That went against everything she ever stood for. What the _hell_ was _she_, peace keeping, rule abiding, Sakura Haruno doing in a _gang?_

XxXx

He stepped into the room feeling the dust crunch underneath of his feet. Glancing over his shoulder to confirm he hadn't been seen, he closed the door, stepping further into the room. He inhaled, tilting his head to the side. Even a year later; Sakura's room still smelled like her.

He stepped past her bed, ignoring the urge to climb in it like he had so many times before. She would not be under the blanket this time or any other time. He had heard before he turned his mic off; that Jiraiya had allowed her to get a different dorm. When she came back from the hospital, she would stay in that one rather than this one.

But still...

He moved towards her nightstand, picking up a single photo frame. Staring at the picture behind the glass, he swallowed hard, his fingers clenching hard enough to crack the glass. Quickly releasing the frame before he crushed it, he winced as a shard of glass stabbed himself in the finger. He pulled it out, relishing in the pain, and brought his finger to his lips to lick the blood off.

When he was sure his finger had stop bleeding, he slipped the back of the frame off, and removed the picture. He tore it in half, placing one of the halves in his pocket and the other back in the frame. Placing the frame face down on the night stand he turned and surveyed the rest of the room.

His eyes fell on a diary in the on the desk in the corner of her room. He sauntered over, and picked it up. Noticing that it was locked he turned his gaze to the rest of the room hoping to find a neon lit sign pointing down at a key. Seeing nothing, he opened up the desk drawer and looked around. Finding nothing again he sighed and looked at the diary as if it would open up and tell him its secrets.

Deciding to be safe, rather than sorry, he pocketed the diary.

He looked around the room some more and apparently satisfied with something, he stood up and moved towards the door. He looked at the room again before opening the door and closing it with a click.

He returned back to the Akatsuki hide out, slamming the door behind him.

"Can you close the door like a normal person," Sasori asked, glaring at him. Giving him the finger in reply, he turned and headed towards the fridge in the corner. Opening it up, he reached in and pulled out a beer. Sitting in the shadows he popped it open and downed half of it in one gulp.

"Where did you go," Kisame asked, looking at him.

"Walk," he grunted. Kisame starred at him, before shrugging and turning back to a book in his hands.

He downed the rest of the beer and reached into the fridge for another one; not ready to stop until he was good and wasted.

XxXx

**Question?** _I'm always curious to know how everybody got their usernames. Anybody want to let a curious girl know?_

_Although the Akatsuki is a "gang" in this story; this story isn't about gangs per say, although the subject of gangs is lightly touched upon._

_I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I apologize for any grammatical or spelling errors. I'm going all this on my computer's Notepad since Word wanted to crap out on me._

_Please rate and review._


	4. Mobility

_I do not own Naruto_

_If I did Pakkun would be in love with Akamaru_

XxXx

She glanced nervously at the expansion of space in front of her before turning her head to look at the blonde haired doctor, eyebrows furrowed in worry.

"If you don't think you can do it Sakura, we can always try another day." Tsunade trailed off as Sakura shook her head and turned her gaze to the expansion of space again. It was six or seven feet with metal bars on either side. She was supposed to stand and walk that length, using the bars as support.

She had tried five times already. Each time, she had stood for three seconds in absolute agony before collapsing, breathless and sweaty, back onto the wheelchair behind her; feeling much like an utter failure. Tsunade and Kakashi, whom had accompanied her to the rehabilitation every time had explained to her that it was common; that she shouldn't expect to walk so soon, no matter how much she willed herself to.

They were being nice, she knew. But she saw the looks the nurses gave each other when she sat, sobbing from pain in the wheelchair. She heard the whispers- "Poor girl." "She's one of them." "It's a shame that it happened to someone so young."

There were certain people who woke out of coma's, changed people. Ones who would never walk again; never be normal again. But Sakura was full of spitfire; willing to go one more time. Just one more. Each time she fell back in the wheelchair; she would squash the feelings of disappointment. "Next time, Sakura, next time."

"Sakura?"

Said girl glanced up at the silver haired man as he stared down at her questioningly. "We can do this later on..."

But she ignored the suggestion much like she did with Tsunade and gripped the metal bars. Feeling blood rush through her veins and make her the tips of her fingers, tingle; she took a deep breath and pulled herself to her feet.

Pain crackled along her legs, eliciting a whimper from her. White spots blossomed across her vision effectively blinding her. Urging her legs to move, her calf twitched causing her to bite her lip in agony.

Gripping the bar so hard her knuckles turned white, she bent her knee and lifted it. She pushed it forward, gritting her teeth, tears streaming down her face.

Her foot touched the floor again. The pain was worse than before. Electricity traveled through every nerve ending in her body. Her vision blurred and turned white, knocking the breath out of her lungs. Her thoughts screamed incoherently; joyous she had moved- finally moved!- and screaming in agony.

"Sakura!"

The pink haired girl blinked, her vision returning. Looking around, she was momentarily surprised to find Kakashi and Tsunade standing over top of her. How did I get on the floor?

"K-Kakashi?" She questioned, aware of how dry her mouth was. He helped her sit up slowly. She was shaking, shivering hard against his arms. He lifted her and put her in the wheelchair but didn't move his arms from her body for which she was grateful.

"What happened," she asked, her teeth chattering.

"You took one step and collapse. You were out of it for a few minutes." Kakashi shifted a little and looked at her in her eyes.

"You're pushing yourself too hard Sakura." Tsunade frowned. "I know you said you'd walk by the end of a month, but you have to listen to your body. Right now, even if you're just standing for a few seconds, you're building muscles back in your legs and that's what's important."

She lowered herself down to Sakura's eye level and grabbed the girl's hands in her own. "Promise me you won't push yourself any further than your body will allow it to go."

Sakura hesitated, her eyes darting between Tsunade's and the bars again. She sighed and nodded her head, looking down at her hands as the blonde squeezed them comfortingly.

But she had walked. She had taken a step. Granted she had felt more pain in that moment than in any other moment she had felt in her life; but she had taken a step. Feeling a sense of pride well up inside of her as Tsunade wheeled her back to her room, she couldn't help but silently make a vow to take a step every time she went back, no matter how much pain she was in.

A whole new world was opening up to her. One that had been closed off since she had awaken from her coma. She understood why she was there, but she was beginning to feel restless being in the hospital surrounded by the same blank white walls. She understood, but it still didn't stop the stuffy feeling from being in the room.

And it didn't help that the others were always talking to her. Sure, she appreciated Naruto and the others company but she couldn't help but feel unnerved when he continually talked to her about the self she couldn't remember. It was like they were talking about a stranger.

Everything she knew about herself and everything they knew were two completely different persona's.

Still, it was better that they were there than not. She had a feeling she'd be going insane if she was left alone to her own devices. And it wasn't like they were there twenty-four/seven. They left to go to school, get food, take showers, and change clothes. Apparently the boarding school was only half a mile away; so that made commute between the hospital and school easy.

Still at least one person was with her at all times. She found herself liking Kakashi, Sasuke, and Shikamaru's company more than the others. They were quiet. Kakashi was perfectly happy to sit there and read one of his mysterious orange books. Sasuke and Shikamaru were both quiet and you could tell that when they had the time they seemed to go off into their own world.

Not that she didn't appreciate Hinata, Ino, or Naruto. But they talked too much. Well, Hinata didn't really, but she was almost always with Naruto, who did talk a lot.

She preferred the quietness. It gave her time to think. How did she get to be in a coma? Why was she in a gang? And why was she going to the most prestigious and expensive school in Japan?

She had asked the other that last question, wondering if she had gotten there on a scholarship; but glances were exchanged and the subject was quickly changed to something completely unrelated. So far she had gathered that anything that warranted a look or a subject change when she asked a question was somehow related to her coma and how she got to be in it.

All she had going for that answer was her being in a gang and the fact that she went to a prestigious school. Gang and prestigious school seemed at opposite ends of the broad spectrum and she wondered exactly how the two fit in with each other and how it all related back to her coma.

It wasn't helping that she was stuck in the hospital unable to go and find out the answers. Everybody was tight-lipped around her. Especially Hinata after the others had found out she had mentioned the Akatsuki to her. They had pulled her out of the room and when she returned she had looked upset and chastised.

Sakura had felt a little guilty about getting her in trouble, but only a little. Because at least the rosette wasn't hiding vital information from the Hyuuga.

So Sakura vowed to start walking as soon as possible. The sooner she walked, the sooner she could get out of the hospital, the quicker she could find answers. She sat a little straighter in the wheelchair, a new-found determination working its way into body, making it buzz with excitement.

But the next time she went back to physically therapy she could not stand, let alone walk.

XxXx

"Good news Sakura," Tsunade said pushing open the door to her hospital room. Naruto paused talking to as the others turned to the doctor. Said girl in question looked up from scowling at her bed, glancing curiously at the older woman before her.

"Aside from physical therapy, which will continue once a day on weekdays, and twice a day on weekends, you're fit to return to school. You'll be bound to a wheelchair for a while, but I see no reason you can't go home," Tsunade beamed at the girl, who in turn, stared dumbfounded at her, unable to fully comprehend what she had just said.

Naruto had enough enthusiasm for the both of them. He stood up fast, knocking his chair to the ground, and thrusting his fists into the air. "DATTEBAYO!"

He rounded at Sakura who was still looking at Tsunade as if she couldn't comprehend it, didn't dare hope to believe.

"Sakura-chan you get to come back! You get to come back! You'll be in class with us again and come to parties and-," He was cut off as Kakashi put a hand around his mouth and pulled him backwards. "Maa, let her process this Naruto-kun."

The blonde nodded his head vigorously and turned to look at Sakura who still hadn't moved since Tsunade told her the news. It took her thirty more seconds, before her eyebrows furrowed, her gaze dropped, and her shoulders slumped.

"Oh." Sakura's voice was quiet and for some reason filled with a disappointment that confused the rest of the occupants in the room.

"Are you not happy with this, Sakura," Tsuande asked, sitting on the edge of her bed and pushed her pink hair out of her face. When Sakura didn't answer, the older woman frowned and placed her fingers under her chin and lifted her face.

Sakura avoided her gaze all the same, but she knew her well enough to know that, that was pain swirling around in her green eyes.

Sakura cleared her throat and forced a weak smile, "It's nothing. I was just hoping that I would be able to walk before getting out."

Tsunade let out a shaky relieved breath she hadn't known she had been holding and offered up her own weak smile in return, "I know it's hard; but you're honestly doing much better than most people in your situation would be right now. You've only been awake for several weeks and in a coma a year before that. Not to mention that you suffered extensive damage before that. It will take time to heal. Trust me."

Sakura held her gaze for several more seconds, before sighing deeply and nodding her head.

"It's true though, you are looking much better than before," Ino said, coming up on the other side of the bed.

It was true. Sakura's form was filling out nicely. She no longer had the thin frail look, but a nice roundness was emerging from beneath her skin making her bones look less pronounced. She was getting her shapely body back and would soon be as attractive as before her coma.

She offered another weak smile, but looked back down at her hands in her laps, eyes still furrowed.

"Something still borrowing you," Shikamaru asked.

"Yes- no. I mean, I'm sure they're busy, but you'd think they would have come hearing about me awakening," she trailed off, biting her lip. Ino rose a confused eyebrow. Was she talking about the Akatsuki? Shooting Hinata an irritated look at that, which caused the girl to shrink, she looked around, realizing the others were asking themselves the same question.

Only Kakashi seemed smart enough to ask her. Clearing his throat he turned to her. "Who, Sakura?"

She seemed to deflate slightly. "My parents. They hadn't once come to see me."

Everybody stopped breathing. For a moment you could have heard a pin drop on a velvet rug.

Sakura looked up at the silence, to see everybody starring at her with horror.

"What?" She asked, breaking the silence. She felt something drop into her stomach as they all turned to look at each other. There seemed to be an argument with their minds that Sakura wasn't a part of.

"Sakura...," Kakashi turned to her slowly, as if unable to word this correctly. Her heart began to ache fiercely and a growing doubt began to push at the edge of her mind. What was it? What was she trying to deny?

Clearing his throat, he began again. "Sakura, you're parents are dead."

She sat, transfixed, staring at him, unable to understand. Slowly, white hot tears began to fall down her face.

"Wh-what? How? When? What happened," she asked, unable to stop the sobs that were racking her body.

"Right after you turned fifteen," Kakashi said softly and sat on her bed, gathering her up into a hug.

"What happened," She asked. The others exchanged glances and out of the corner of her eyes she saw. Slowly, the implication dawned on her and she sat up, wiping the tears away with the back of her hand.

Her parents death had something to do with her coma.

XxXx

_Sorry this is so late. I've been out of state for the past month and then I had writers block there for a while._


End file.
